It Shouldn't Come As A Surprise
by youngbloodeverdeen
Summary: What would happen if Gale was repead instead of Peeta? Katniss/Gale
1. Chapter 1

What would happen if Gale got reaped instead of Peeta? Story picks up right after Katniss volunteers for Prim.

* * *

Effie reaches into the clear bowl full of boy's names and trots back to the microphone, one hand planted firmly on her wig that has tilted severely to the right after Haymitch's assault. Before I can even worry for his safety, Effie calls out the last name I want to hear, "Gale Hawthorne."

I find him immediately, walking to the stage with a determined mask plastered on his face. He takes his place next to me and I avoid his gaze, my eyes burning a hole on the stage. Mayor Undersea takes Effie's place and starts to read the Treaty of Treason, but I'm not listening. Why Gale? It had to be Gale...

Before I know it, Mayor Undersea instrucks me and Gale to shake hands and the national anthem plays. For the first time I look into his eyes and he looks into mine with a fiery rage. They can't do this to us. They can't force us to fight against each other for our lives. But they can and they will. I have a bitter taste in my mouth when a group of peacekeepers comes to escort us into the Justice Building. They lead us to separate rooms.

I sit in silence, stroking the velvet couch I sit on. I only know velvet because my mother has a dress with a collar made of the fabric. As soon as I hear the doorknob turn I look up and stand. Prim comes running into the room. I hug her hard, afraid I'll never get to hold her again. And I won't. Mom comes into the room after her and we all sit on the couch, Prim still wrapped in my arms. I begin to remind them of the things they need to remember to do when I'm gone. Gale and I made a pact a year ago that if either of us went into the games, the other would still bring food and herbs to the tribute's family. Neither of us thought the odds would be so far out of reach so that we both would be entered. "You'll try to win, won't you?" Prim asks, her voice quiet and shaking. I tighten my grip around her and say, "It'll be hard, but with Gale by my side I might stand a chance." My throat tightens when I say his name.

All too soon the peacekeepers come and tear Prim from my arms. She's screaming as they pull her away. The door closes and there's a deafening silence. A few seconds later Madge strides through the door, her face wrapped in worry.

"They let you bring a token of your district in the games. Will you wear this?" she asks, her voice steady and she holds up the golden pin that was attached to her dress earlier when we sold her the berries. A token is the last thing on my mind but I nod and she attaches it to my dress without asking permission. Then she hugs me and kisses my cheek. Before I know it she turns on her heel and leaves the room. My cheek still burns when the door opens again. In walks Peeta Mellark. He has a hard look set on his face. I don't bother to hide my surprise as he strides towards me.

"I'm sorry," his voice says, shaking slightly.

"You have nothing to be sorry for," I say. He looks at me for a long moment, his eyes sad. "I'm sorry I didn't walk to you and hand you the bread. I'm sorry I just threw it at you," he says softly. I try to hold back the tears that threaten to come. "Don't be sorry," I say, "that bread kept my family alive. Without it we would have starved." I look away from him, my eyes focusing on the thick carpet. "I saw you the next day. You looked away from me and at a dandelion," he continues. I nod. "Here," he says and holds something out to me. It's a bag. I take it from him and look inside. Cookies. I've never had them because I can never afford them. We sit there in silence for a few minutes until the peacekeepers come to take him away. He gets up without fighting, but he looks at me one last time and says, "I'll make sure your sister doesn't starve." My throat is dry when I say, "Thank you."

I'm left alone again. No one else comes. I sit there for a few more minutes until a group of peacekeepers comes to lead me away. We take a car to the train station, Effie yapping the whole way. We stand outside the train, letting reporters take pictures of us, before we board. Once we're out of the camera's sight Gale opens his arms and I don't hesitate to crash into them. Effie stops talking for a few seconds. We pull back and I wipe away the stray tear that falls down my cheek. Effie then leads us through the train cars, giving us a brief tour before showing us to our rooms. She tells us when we should be ready for dinner then leaves Gale and I alone. We hug again once she leaves and I struggle to hold back my tears. "How much different can it be?" Gale says into my hair. "What?" I look up at him. "How much different can it be to hunt humans instead of animals?" he says. I stay silent. Not much, if you can forget that they're people. "Are we gonna stay together?" I ask. "Always, Catnip," he says. We stay like that for a while, holding each other close. Then he pulls away and says, "I need to wash the day off." I nod and turn to my room. I decide to take a shower.

When I'm dried off I look for clothes in the closet. I pull on a green outfit, then remember the pin Madge gave me. I secure it to my shirt and notice for the first time what it is. A mockingjay. I'd smile if I hadn't been on my way to die. I leave my room and head to the dining cart. When I get there Gale and Effie are already seated. I sit down next to Gale. "Where is Haymitch?" Effie asks, eying the two of us suspiciously. "Last I saw him he raided the spirits," Gale says. I roll my eyes. Figures.

The meal comes in courses and I stuff myself at each one, despite Effie's warnings. She tries to keep up a conversation, but we discourage her with our persevering silence. When it's over Gale and I sit back and rub our stomachs. "I haven't been this full in years," I say. "I don't think I've ever been this full," he says. We look at each other and laugh until our heavy stomachs beg us to stop.

Effie leads us to another part of the train, a cart with a few couches and a large TV. Gale and I sit next to each other, our bodies pressed together and I rest my head on his shoulder. We watch the replays of the reapings of each district. A few characters stand out, but I'm too overwhelmed to remember most of them when we watch the replay of our own reapings. I feel Gale get stiff and he wraps his arm around my shoulders, probably comforting himself more than me. When it's done Effie purses her lips together and says, "Your mentor has a lot to learn about presentation. A lot about televised behavior."

"He was drunk," says Gale, his face blank but I hear the ghost of a smile in his voice. Effie doesn't pick up on it. "He's always drunk," I say in the same tone. "You're going to have to find a way to get through to him. It's time for bed now," she tries to say in a cheerful tone. She exits the cart. A few seconds later Haymitch bursts in through the door on the other side. "I miss supper?" he slurs, then vomits over himself and falls in it. Gale and I exchange disgusted looks then move to help him up. We half carry him to his room then push him under the shower head and let the water cascade onto his clothed body. "Let's make one of the capital people do the rest," I say and Gale nods. We track one down then walk towards our rooms. We stop outside of mine and stand there for a few seconds before he opens his arms and I crash into them. We stand there like that a bit then break apart without a word. I go into my room and take off my clothes before crawling into bed in nothing but my underwear.

Instead of falling asleep, I lay with my eyes open, staring blankly at the ceiling. After what feels like an eternity there is a knock on my door. "Wait a minute!" I call out and jump up to quickly pull on the first unfrilly nightgown I can find. Than I open the door to see Gale. I step aside to let him in. He wordlessly sits down on the bed and I sit down next to him.

"Only one of us can make it out," is the first thing he says. He looks at me and I nod. "Let's just fight together and hope we won't be the last two left," I say. "Do you mind if I stay?" he says and I shake my head. We lay under the covers, separate at first, but then he adjusts his arm so it's under my head and I turn on my side to face him. We make eye contact for a few minutes until he closes his eyes. Soon his breath starts to slow until I know he's asleep. Eventually I follow him into the darkness.

* * *

This is the first story I'm uploading to this site. I know this AU is probably over done, but I couldn't find and stories already published that I liked all that much so I decided to write my own. Sorry if this seems pretty similar to the book, I'll branch off a ton during training and the actual games.


	2. Chapter 2

Before I get further into this story, I just want to say that sorry if sometimes the sentences I write aren't structured very well. English is not my first language. I mean, I've known it practically my whole life since in Sweden they start teaching English the first year you enter school. I like to think I'm pretty good at it, words and punctuation wise, but sometimes I get sentence structures mixed up cause I do speak two other languages.

* * *

"Up, up, up! It's going to be a big, big, big day!"

I groan at the sound of Effie's voice and knocks on my door. "Breakfast is at 9," she says, then walks away. It's funny how when you wake up you forget everything exists for a second until you remember what happened the previous day. I'm going to be in The Hunger Games. So is Gale. I open my eyes with a start when I remember that he slept here last night. He's laying on his side, his hair sticking up at strange angles, his tired eyes already fixed on me. "Good morning, Catnip," he says, the grogginess of sleep still lodged in his throat. I smile at him. I scoot to him and lay in his arms for a few minutes, listening to his heartbeat. Then we stand up and he heads to his own room to change. I put on the same green outfit I wore last night and head towards the dining cart. Effie is there before me. I sit where I sat yesterday and look at the hearty breakfast placed in front of me. "What is this?" I ask, pointing at the mug of brown liquid. It smells sweet. "Hot chocolate," she says with a smile. I take a sip. The flavor explodes on my mouth.

I hear the door to the dining cart open and close and I look up to see Gale. He raises his eyebrows and sits down next to me. He starts eating immediately. Effie makes several attempts at conversation but we discourage her with our grunts. After few minutes of awkward, one-sided conversation, Haymitch staggers into the room. He sits down at the table, across from Gale, and takes out a flask of what I can only assume is alcohol and pours it into his glass. We eat in silence for a minute until I clear my throat and say, "So you're supposed to give us advice."

"Here's some advice. Stay alive," he sputters and bursts out laughing. Gale and I eye each other. I lift my eyebrows and he nods. When Haymitch lifts the glass to his mouth Gale acts, shoving it out of his hand and it falls to the ground. Haymitch stares at the shattered glass for a split second before he lunges at Gale. Gale easily blocks Haymitch's flying hand and I grip my knife. Haymitch starts to lunge again when I stab the table between him and Gale.

"Looks like I actually have a pair of fighters this year," Haymitch says, then sets his eyes on me. "Can you hit anything with that knife besides a table?" he asks. I pry the knife from the table then throw it at the wall. It lodges between two panels in the wall, making me look better than I am. "Stand over there, both of you," he says. Gale and I walk to the part of the room Haymitch gestures to. He walks around us, poking and prodding us randomly.

"Well you're not entirely hopeless. You're both fit, and you're definitely attractive enough," Haymitch says, slapping Gale on the shoulder on that last part. "You," he turns to me, "will be good enough once the stylists get a hold of you." I glare at him, but he's right.

"All right, I'll make a deal with you. You don't interfere with my drinking, and I'll stay sober enough to help you," says Haymitch. "But you have to do exactly what I say." Gale starts to protest but I give him a look that makes him stop in his tracks. "Alright," Gale says. "What is the best strategy-," I start to say, until Haymitch interrupts me.

"One thing at a time. In a few minutes, well be pulling into the station. You'll be put in the hands of your stylists. You're not going to like what they do to you. But no matter what it is, don't resist," says Haymitch. Gale clenches his jaw. "But-," I start to protest. "No buts. Don't resist," and with that he takes a bottle of spirits and leaves the cart.

Gale turns to me and says, "Listen, I don't care what the drunk oaf says-."

"Gale, let's not fight him," I interrupt. He frowns and a crease forms between his eyebrows. "Okay, Catnip," he sighs. I walk to him and we hold each other, him resting his chin in the crook of my neck and for a second our world doesn't seem completely hopeless.

Suddenly bright light floods the compartment and we look at the windows. We exchange a knowing look and walk cautiously towards the window. The bright lights and tall buildings of the Capital fly past us. There's a crowd pointing at us, recognizing the train as one that carries tributes. I step away from the window, pulling Gale with me by his shirtsleeve. "It's sick," he says. I only nod, not wanting Gale to go on a rampage in the place he can't get away with it.

* * *

After all the hair below my neck (and some from above) is torn from my body, after Cinna tells me his plans of making my debut in Panem a fiery show, Gale and I are brought down to the bottom level of the remake center. They show us to our chariot, arranging our capes into just the right positions. Cinna and Portia leave us alone for a minute to discuss in hushed tones. Gale looks at me, eyeing me up and down before he says, "You actually look like you." I smile and poke him in the ribs, but then something in his eyes changes and I ask him, "What do you think about this?" He shrugs, "I'll rip yours off if you rip off mine." I nod. He lets out a loud sigh and I'm about to ask him why when Cinna and Portia come back. I give him a look that says we need to talk later. Cinna jumps onto the chariot, holding a lit torch. "Here it goes," he says. I squeeze my eyes shut. But nothing happens. There's just a light tickle where my cape meets my back and I open my eyes again. Cinna then lights my headpiece and turns to Gale to do the same. He jumps off as the first chariot takes off.

"You look..." Gale starts until Cinna yells something I can't quite comprehend. "What did he say?" I ask Gale. "He told us to hold hands," Gale says and reaches for me. I lace my fingers through his and then we're off, the sound of a roaring fire training behind us.

When we emerge, the crowd goes silent for a split second before they start to cheer. They chant our district and even put in the effort to search through the programs to find our names. They turn their heads away from every chariot ahead of us. I'm dumbfounded until I catch sight of Gale and I on one of the screens. We look breathtaking. I grip Gale's hand tighter and force a big, toothy grin. I raise my other hand to wave at the crowd the way I've seen other tributes do in years past. I sneak another glance at the screen and am upset when Gale barely has a smile grace his face. Digging my nails into his hand, I glance at him and smile even bigger, hoping he gets the message. His smile grows slightly and he reluctantly starts waving to the crowd. I turn back to my side and resume waving, even blowing kisses when I feel a wave of confidence go through me.

Something bubbles up in me and it takes a few seconds for the word to form in my mind. _Hope_. No one will forget us now. We're no longer just poor children from the Seam. We are Gale Hawthorne and Katniss Everdeen; the boy and girl on fire!

Someone throws me a red rose and I catch it, bringing it to my nose to sniff. I blow a kiss at the general direction of the sender.

When we enter the City Circle I calm a bit. Gale and I look at each other and he hands me another rose that someone must have thrown at him. When our chariots form a loop the music that I didn't even realize was playing stops abruptly. The horses led us right outside of President Snow's mansion and I see him sitting on a large thrown on his balcony. He stands and raises his hands and, in a gravely voice he speaks into a microphone, welcoming the tributes to the Capital. He begins a speech that contains no real importance. When he finishes the national anthem plays. Gale and I raise our hands above our heads, in mock respect, but I doubt anyone suspects. The chariots make one last loop around the City Circle before they carry us into the Training Center.

When our chariot pulls to a stop Gale and I slowly pull our hands away from each other, massaging the blood to get it moving again. "Thanks for reminding me to smile," he says. "Someone needs to put you in your place. I'd rather it be me," I joke, but we both know the truth behind it.

* * *

I wish I had this much focus writing the essay I'm supposed to be working on, but eh, I have a whole weekend for that.


	3. Chapter 3

We ride the elevator up to our floor.

I've only riden in an elevator a couple of times. In District 12 there's one in the Justice Building. I rode it once to collect the medal for my father's death. I rode it yesterday to say my final goodbyes to my family and friends. There's also an elevator that carries the workers down to the mines. Whenever my class would go on field trips to the mines I found a way to avoid it. Now I never have to again.

Once out of sight of the other tributes Gale and I embrace. It's brief, we pull away right before the doors open on our floor. We're greeted by Effie, and congratulates us and goes into a speech about how proud of us she is of how we held ourselves. She mentions she's been talking us up all day.

"I've been mysterious," she says. "Because, of course, Haymitch hasn't told me your strategies, but I've done my best with what I had to work with, like how Katniss sacrificed herself for her sister. How you've both successfully struggled to overcome the barbarism of your district."

Gale and I exchange a look and a scowl sets on his face. I elbow him in the gut when Effie isn't looking and obviously force a smile. He rolls his eyes at me and I lightly step on his foot.

"People have had their reservations, you two being from the coal district and all. But I said to them, why this is very clever of me, I said 'If you put enough pressure on coal, they turn to diamonds'," she says. I hit Gale so he doesn't laugh. I respond positively and all Gale does is agree. He shoves me when Effie isn't paying attention. "I can't make any sponsor deals for you, though," she says, her voice actually trailing sadness, "Only Haymitch can seal the deals. But I'll get him at gunpoint if it's necessary." I like the determination. She sets us on our ways, showing us to our rooms and telling us what time dinner is. Gale and I part ways to clean ourselves and change.

I step into the bathroom and it's half the side of my home. The thought sends a pang through my heart as I think about Prim. With a groan I strip and step into the shower, selecting the pine scented soap. I scrub off the little makeup there is off my face and the nervous sweat off my body. When I'm done I step out and press a button that sends a gust of air through my hair, drying and untangling it with ease before I pull it back into my regular braid. The closet has a screen from which I can select an outfit, a plain white shirt and green pants, without even having to glance inside. I pull on the clothes before leaving to find Gale. I stop outside of his room and knock. I hear footsteps and then a shirtless Gale opens the door.

"Hey, Catnip," he says and lets me inside. "Put on a shirt," I say, trying to hide my blush. It's not like I've never seen him without a shirt before. When I walk past him I smell pine and I smirk a bit, knowing we chose the same soap. Is that weird? I sit on his bed and watch him as he turns and pulls out the first shirt his fingers touch. I think I'm staring for a little bit too long when he asks, "Like what you see?" I blush even harder and throw a pillow at him. He swats it away and laughs at me. "Put on that shirt, Gale," I say, gripping another pillow, and he pulls the gray shirt over his head, that smile still on his face. He plops down next to me and says, "You know, sometimes you're such a prude." I smack him with the pillow and he raises his hands. "Shut up," I say and smack him again when he opens his mouth. His eyes dance with amusement and I'm tempted to hit him again. He opens his mouth again and I start to hurtle the pillow towards him when he catches my arm. I let out an aggravated groan and try with my other arm but he catches that too. We wrestle a bit, but it's useless. Soon enough he's sitting on top of me, that lopsided smile etched on his face, and he's using one hand to pin both of my arms above my head. "Don't you fucking dare," I say before he uses his free hand to tickle me. I hopelessly try to suppress the laughs that come out, attempting to kick him off me. "Stop!" I scream and he lets go of me, laughing and clutching his stomach. I'm about to hit him when the door suddenly opens and in rushes Effie.

"What are you two doing? It's against the rules for you to fight!" she screams. Gale and I sit up and exchange guilty eye contact. "We were just messing around..." I start until I see Effie press her lips together. "Save it!" she yells and I shut my mouth. "Dinner isn't for twenty minutes, but I suggest you two follow me now," Effie says, narrowing her eyes and staring us down. We stand up and straighten ourselves out before following Effie into the lounge area. Cinna and Portia are standing on a balcony that overlooks the Capital. The open door sends a cool breeze inside. Gale and I sit on the couch across from the large TV screen. We sit in silence and the temporary happiness that I felt when wrestling with Gale is gone. Now it sinks in again. Only one of us has a shot, but it's even more likely that we'll die together. After what feels like an eternity of being stuck with my thoughts, Effie announces that it's time for dinner and ushers us all to the table. Gale and I sit next to each other. When a silent man offers us wine we both accept, clanging our glasses together before taking a sip. It's much more bitter than it smells. Haymitch sits at the table and, while he accepts the offer of wine, is actually eating and quietly participating in conversation. It's an improvement, to say the least.

The food is delicious, the table talk is polite, but it's not in the least bit relaxing. The conversation topic switches to our interview costumes. I'm about to chime in when Gale elbows my side. I turn to him to glare but stop when I see the look in his eyes. He gestures to one of the servers and I look at her. I recognize her red hair and pale white skin immediately, but I can't quite place where and when. I look back at Gale and something tells me it's not a nice story. I look down at my empty plate and suddenly I'm not hungry for desert anymore, but the red-haired girl places a beautiful cake on the table. I think about Peeta Mellark for a second before it bursts into flame. It burns in the middle of the top before the flame flares out to the side and eventually burns out. I turn to one of the other servers and ask, "What makes it burn? Is it alcohol?" The brown-eyed man only shakes his head and I hear Effie say, "He's an Avox, dear." I turn to Effie and ask stupidly, "What's an Avox?" Haymitch says, "Someone who committed a crime, probably a traitor of some sort. They cut out their tongues so they can't speak." I look at Gale. "Oh," is all I can get out. "And yes, Katniss, the cake had alcohol, but it all burned off. I ordered it specifically for your fiery debut."

We eat the cake and moving to the couch Gale and I were sitting on before dinner. There we watch the replay of the opening ceremonies. Gale and I are the only couple that leaves a lasting impression. This will give us a great advantage when it comes to finding sponsors.

"Whose idea was the hand holding?" asks Haymitch.

"Cinna's," says Portia.

"Just the perfect touch of rebellion," says Haymitch, "Very nice."

Gale and I make eye contact. Rebellion. That's all our friendship has ever been.

"Tomorrow morning is the first training session. Meet me for breakfast and I'll tell you exactly how I want you to play it," says Haymitch. "Now go get some sleep while the grown-ups talk."

Gale and I walk to our rooms. We stop outside of mine and he says in a hushed tone, "She's alive." I nod and say, "The boy can't be." I turn to my door and turn the knob before looking back at Gale and saying, "Goodnight. Try to actually get some sleep tonight." He forces a quick smile and says, "You too, Catnip." I go inside my room.

The girl is there, picking up the costume that I stripped off before I showered. I say, "I'm sorry. I was supposed to give that to Cinna, could you give it to him?" She nods and quickly leaves the room. I want to say sorry for leaving her in the woods, but I don't know how to without getting overheard. So I let her leave. I find a long white nightgown, like the kind my mother wears, and fall into bed.

* * *

I wake up the next morning screaming. The nightmare slowly fades from my memory, but there are traces of the red-haired girl and past gory scenes from years past of the games. I drag myself of bed and take a long and hot shower, washing of the cold sweat that came over me in the night. I make sure to select pine scented soap again. When I'm done I find there's an outfit set out for me in front of the closet. Tight black pants, a burgundy long sleeved top and leather shoes. I braid my hair down my back and look at myself in the mirror. This is the most I've looked like myself since the morning of the reaping. I hope Gale looks like himself too.

Haymitch gave us no official time for when breakfast is supposed to be, so I head down when my stomach rumbles. The table is empty, but there's a smaller table to the side with a large assortment of dishes. An Avox stands next to it. I ask him if I can serve myself and he nods. I pick up a plate and stack it with eggs, ham, sausage, toast, and fruits I don't recognize. I sit at the table and eat silently until I hear footsteps behind me. I turn to see Gale. "Serve yourself," I say. He turns to the table and loads a plate with all kinds of goods. I notice that he is wearing the same outfit as me. He sits down next to me as I stare at the sunrise.

The sunrise in the Capital looks almost as nice as the sunrise back home and I smirk knowing that District 12 has a beauty that the Capital can't steal. I think of Prim and my mother back home. My mother preparing their meal of mush. Prim milking her goat before school.

Haymitch enters the room and gets himself food. I get up to get seconds as he sits down. I get lamb stew and some rolls and sit down next to Gale once more. It's not until Haymitch finishes his last bit of food and pushes his plate away that he says, "Alright. Training. First off, would you like me to coach you separately or together?"

"Why would you want to coach us separately?" I ask.

"Say one of you has a skill you don't want the other to know," he says. Gale clears his throat, "We know each other's skills already."

"Together then?" Haymitch asks and Gale and I nod in unison.

"Alright, give me some idea of what you can do," he says. Gale starts before I can even open my mouth, "We're hunting partners." Haymitch doesn't reveal anything on his face. "I'm alright at archery," I say. "You're amazing at archery," Gale says, "She can hit a squirrel straight in the eye."

"Gale is a genius with traps and snares," I say loudly, "He's also great at tracking." Gale shrugs and says, "You're better." I narrow my eyes and say, "He's also very strong."

"I can't guarantee there'll be a bow in the arena, but I suggest you show your skill to the gamemakers during your private session," Haymitch says, "Until then, stay clear of the archery station. None of the tributes, besides Gale, have to know your skill." I nod. Haymitch turns to Gale and says, "There will be weights in the training center. Practice with those, but don't reveal how much you can lift in front of the other tributes. Show some snares to the gamemakers, show them your strength, and maybe do some archery." Gale just stares at Haymitch and says, "Alright."

"In the meantime, learn some skills you don't already have. Throw a mace. Learn what's poisonous and what's not. Are we clear?" Haymitch says. Gale and I nod. "One last thing, when you're out in public always stay together," he says. Gale and I eye each other and agree. "Now get out. Meet Effie at the elevator at ten for training," Haymitch finishes, stands up, and walks away. Gale and I go to my room and lay on the bed, talking over what we want to practice. When there's five minutes until ten we walk to the elevator to meet Effie. She greets us with a smile and rides the elevator down with us. This is it. This is when we meet our competitors.

* * *

This weekend is probably the least busy weekend I've had in a while, so that's why I've been able to update this so much. I don't know exactly what my schedule is going to be so I can't say for sure how often I'll be uploading new chapters.

Also, sorry if this seems like it's too close to the book right now. I'll branch off a ton when they actually go in the games.


	4. Chapter 4

I have two finals next week and I have to finish a ten page essay :):):)

* * *

We're the last to arrive, even though we're on time. The rest of the tributes stand in a circle around a professional looking women. We stand among the others and someone comes to pin a cloth with the number twelve to our backs. When I look around the room I notice that none of the other tributes are wearing matching outfits like Gale and I. I'd be annoyed if it was anyone but Gale.

The women starts to speak, telling us that this is our time for training and we should use it wisely. She advises us to learn how to take care of ourselves in addition to learning how to use a weapon. Then she reads a long list of stations that we have at our disposal to train at and sends us on our way. Gale turns to me and says, "Spears?" I nod and we head to the station.

Gale's great. I'm not. Gale has more upper body strength than me so he's able to send them farther. I watch his arms tense and relax as he lets loose another spear and it sinks into the dummy's chest. We're training in peace until the boys from District 1, 2 and 4 show up. They throw the spears like they've had years of practice, which they certainly have, and don't bother to hide their snickers when my spear falls short. Before either of us can make any rash decisions, I pull Gale by his sleeve to another station where I know he'll be good. It's called Knot Tying but that really means snares.

His eyes light up but his expression stays a scowl. I hope he's saving his smile for me. I think we've made the instructor's day when we show up. I guess learning to tie knots is not all that popular. Once we let on that we know snares, he instructs us on a technique that'll lift a person in the air by their leg. Gale gets it down almost immediately and repeats it before I even finish. This is how we will survive. Or how he will. I frown to myself. Only one can live.

Together we're a great pair, but what are we alone? Gale is strong, handsome, and smart. He'll no doubt have sponsors. If I was able, I'd bet on him. But what about me? I'm not particularly pretty. I'm not obviously strong. The only thing I have going for me right now is the fact that I volunteered.

But I have Gale. And Gale has me. Without me he'd never be able to keep a level head, probably say something snarky and get himself killed by the gamemakers and they'd call it an accident.

During the three days of training we go to almost every station. I breeze by on the edible foods test, Gale excels in hand-to-hand combat. On the second day we notice the twelve-year-old girl from District 11 is following us. "Her name is Rue," Gale tells me. Rue is a small, yellow flower that grows in the meadow. Rue and Primrose. Both so young, and both so delicate. In training, Rue never misses a target with a slingshot, but what good is a slingshot going to be against a knife?

During lunch Gale and I are the only ones besides the careers that don't eat alone. We struggle to find new things to talk about. Gale can't rant. Neither of us can mention home. So we talk about the woods. I almost wish we'd ran away the morning of the reaping, but I don't because no one else would have taken Prim's place. We talk about what we would have done, where we would have gone. I tell him about the lake where I used to go with my father when he was alive.

After lunch on the third day are the private sessions with the gamemakers. This is the time to show them what we can do. They go by District order, so naturally Gale and I will be last. When Rue leaves we're free to talk. "What do you think you'll do?" I ask. "Throw some spears, tie some snares, maybe shoot a few arrows," he says. Then he shrugs, "Or maybe I'll leave the arrows for you." I scoot to him and lean my head on his shoulder. What he said was not intended to be romantic, but it sends a pang to my heart. Suddenly a new thought spins around my head. Gale is not my boyfriend but if I opened that door, _would h_ _e be_?

They call his name and I wish him good luck. Then he leaves the room and I'm left alone with that thought. Would he be? Has Gale ever thought about this? Why am I thinking about this _now_?

My head is still buzzing when they call my name. This is it. I slowly breathe in and out then stand up. I walk into the training room and my eyes lock on the gamemakers immediately.

They've been here too long. They've seen twenty-three tributes before me and they're getting bored. I'll just have to give them a show.

I make a beeline for the archery station. This is what I've been aching to do since day one. I choose the bow that most resembles the one I have at home and sling the matching set of quivers on my back. Instead of using the shooting range I walk over to the knife throwing station where there are actual dummies instead of just targets. I string a arrow and pull back the bow. I know something is wrong as soon as I let go. I miss the dummy by a few inches and feel the flood of embarrassment rush into my cheeks. I go back to the archery range and shoot a few arrows until I get a feel for the bow. Then I come back and shoot the dummy, once in the head, once in the heart, and once in the stomach. I roll then stop on one knee as I shoot the dummy across the room at the sword station, hitting it through the head. I aim my bow up and shoot one of the lights, creating a shower of sparks.

I look back at the gamemakers, but only a few of them are paying attention to me. Most of them seem to be distracted by roasted pig that was just brought in. A range of emotions goes through me until I settle on one. Furious. I've been upstaged by a dead pig.

I string one more arrow and aim at the gamemakers' table. There are a few cries before I let go. It goes flying through the apple in the pig's mouth and plants itself in the wall.

"Thank you for your consideration," I say and give a slight bow.

I walk away and throw the bow behind me, dismissing myself. I get on the elevator and punch the 12 button before it sinks in. Oh God, what have I done?

I make it to the top before I start crying. The others call me from the sitting area but I just bolt to my room, locking the door behind me, and fall on my bed.

What will the gamemakers do to me now? Arrest me? Execute me? Does it even matter? I was never going to win the games. Gale can. Then he'll take care of Prim. Oh God, Prim. Will they punish Prim for my actions?

Haymitch and Effie are knocking on the door. I yell and scream at them to go away. Eventually they comply. A half a minute later there's a quiet knock on my door.

"Catnip," Gale says, his voice low. I freeze for a second, then wipe under my eyes and walk to the door. I unlatch the lock and open the door. He rushes inside and closes it behind him. We stare at each other for a second. I open my mouth to say something but all that comes out is a sob. He pulls me into his arms and I sob into his shirt. After a few moments of this he lifts me and carries me to my bed. I'm sitting in his lap, crying as he tries to soothe me.

It takes a long time for me to calm down. For a few minutes I try to control my breathing as Gale runs his fingers through my hair. "Are you ready to talk about it?" he asks. I let out a loud sigh and with a hoarse voice say, "I shot an arrow at the gamemakers." His chest starts to shake and for a moment I think he's about to cry when a sharp laugh comes out of his throat. I slap his arm and say, "This is serious." He laughs for a few more seconds then says, "I thought about doing that too." I slap him again, "What if they do something to Prim?" He tenses for a moment then says, "They're already punishing you by forcing you to be a tribute. The worst thing they can do is kill you themselves in the arena instead of letting another tribute do it." I think about it for a moment. To arrest my family, they'd have to say what happened during the private training session. "You're probably right," I murmur. "Never thought I'd hear you say that," he says, encouraging to hit me again.

I lay in his arms until it's time for dinner. Gale waits for me while I wash my face then we walk to the table together. We stay silent while the adults make a feeble attempt at small talk. We get halfway into the second course until Haymitch finally says, "Alright, what did she do?" Gale shrugs and says, "Ask her." I'm tempted to fling my peas at him when Haymitch turns to me, but instead I just come out with it, "I shot an arrow at the gamemakers." Effie gasps at the same time as Gale chuckles. "You what?" Effie shrieks. I groan and say, "I shot an arrow at them. They weren't paying attention to me and I just got mad so I shot an arrow at them!"

"And what did they say?" Cinna asks.

"I'm not sure. I walked out after that," I say.

"Without being dismissed?" Haymitch asks.

"I dismissed myself," I say.

"Well that's that," says Haymitch, buttering a roll. I ask, "Do you think they'll do anything to me?" Haymitch shrugs and says, "Probably not. They might make your life hell in the arena, or maybe even give you a low training score." He says mostly the same things that Gale says and this makes me feel reassured. I look at Gale and smile, actually feeling good enough to eat.

When we're done eating, we gather around the TV to watch them announce the tributes' training scores. Gale sits so close to me that our bodies are pressed together from knee to shoulder. Effie eyes us suspiciously for what seems the like hundredth time in the past few days.

They show the tributes in District order, then show the number then got in training. All of the career tributes get scores ranging from 8 to 10. The rest vary. Thresh, from District 11, gets a 10. Little Rue gets a 7. Gale tenses besides me when they show his picture. Then the sparkling number 9 shines next to his face. I congratulate him. I'm glad that at least one of us got a high score.

I dig my fingernails into my thighs and Gale wraps his arm around my shoulders when my picture pops up. Then they're flashing the number 11 on the screen. 11!

Gale turns to me and pulls me in for a hug. Effie lets out a squeal. Everyone slaps me on the back. "This is a mistake... how did this happen?" I ask Haymitch. "They must have liked your temper," he says, "They have a show to put on, they need some players with some heat."

The adults congratulate us until Effie shoos us off to our rooms. We stop outside my room and Gale reaches out for my hand. "Good job, Catnip," he says, rubbing my hand between his. "Not too shabby, yourself," I say. We stand there in silence for a few minutes, him still holding my hand, until he says, "Go to bed." I'm tempted to invite him inside but I don't know what to say. I'll see him tomorrow anyway. "Goodnight," I say and go into my room. I strip and pull on the nightgown from the night before. Then I crawl under the covers and collapse, feeling the tether of sleep pulling on me after a long and stressful day.

* * *

Gotta go work on my ten page essay now :):):):):):):):):) Only nine more pages left lolololololololololol


	5. Chapter 5

You guys are either gonna love me or hate me after this

* * *

I wake up with a start. There's a smooth layer of sweat on my skin. Effie's knocking on the door, telling me that it's going to be another big, big, big day.

Today's a Sunday. Hunting day. Through my window I see the sun begin to peak over the horizon. By this time Gale and I would already be at our spot, sitting on the rock and watching the sunrise.

I wipe my face with the bed sheet and go to take a shower. I'm not careful to select soap this morning and I punch a button that drops a layer of heavy foam on my head.

When I finally scrub the foam away I get out of the shower and dry off. I pull on a black shirt and pants and go to get breakfast. When I get to the dining room Gale, Haymitch and Effie are already there. They're talking in hushed voices. This seems strange, but I decide to get food before questioning. I fill a bowl with a lamb stew. Gale's sitting next to Haymitch for some reason, so I sit across from him. I'm about halfway done eating when I realize no one's talking. I wipe my mouth and say, "So you're coaching us for our interviews today, right?"

"That's right," says Haymitch.

"You don't have to wait until I'm done. I can listen and eat at the same time," I say.

"Well, there's been a change of plans. We're going to coach you two separately for the interviews," he says.

I look at Gale and he's avoiding my eyes, keeping them locked on the stew. "Why?" I ask, picking up a roll and stabbing it with the butter knife. Haymitch pipes in, "Well you two can't have the same personality for the interviews, no one will remember you." I turn my narrowed eyes towards Haymitch when Effie says, "And Gale doesn't need to learn how to walk in heels, but you do."

"Fine," I say.

"We'll each have four hours with you. Katniss will start with Effie and I'll start with Gale," says Haymitch. I can't imagine what I'll do with Effie for four hours, but she has me working until the last minute. Most of it is about smiling. She keeps scolding me for glaring.

She teaches me how to walk like a lady, sit like a lady, smile like a lady, even yawn like a lady. When it's time for lunch I hitch my dress to my thighs and kick off the heels, my trademark scowl back on my face.

I refuse to look at Gale, even though he's sitting next to me again. He and Haymitch have high spirits, so I'm hoping that my afternoon will be better than my morning.

When it's time for me and Haymitch to work we sit on the couch in front of the TV. He's leaning back, staring at me for at least five minutes until I finally ask him, "What?"

"I'm trying to figure out what to do with you," he says.

"Can I ask what Gale's strategy is?" I say.

"Sarcastic and witty," he says.

"Can't I do something like that?" I ask.

"No, you'd be too similar," he says, "And you were too smiley and wavy on the chariot to pull that off."

We try a dozen different strategies but none of them work. Haymitch starts drinking about halfway through. He gives up and tells me to wing it. I have dinner in my room that night. When Gale knocks on the door I tell him to go away. He didn't have to say it, but I know him well enough to know when he's lying to me. To work off my anger I throw dishes at the walls. The red headed avox comes in and, seeing the mess, starts to clean up. I try to help her, but she gestures at me to stay where I am. It's then that I notice there are cuts on my hand and I'm bleeding. She sees the blood and washes then with soap. When she's done she wraps them in bandages. She tucks me into bed, pulling the blanket up to my chin.

"We should have helped you," I say. She shakes her head and points to her throat then mine. I think she means that I would have ended up an avox too. She leaves and I slowly drift into sleep.

* * *

In the morning my prep team wakes me. Today I belong to Cinna. He's the only hope I have at being unforgettable in my interview.

My prep team spends the day transforming me. They stencil flame patterns on my arm, painting my nails into flames, erase my face then draw it back on with red lips and eyelashes that flicker when I blink, cover me in a gold shimmering powder. Venia weaves red into my hair in a braid that starts on one side of my head and ends at the other.

Cinna comes in, carrying a bag that hangs on a hook and I can only assume that it is my dress. "Close your eyes," he says and when I do he lifts my arms over my head and tells me to keep them there. He slides the dress over me and I feel it's weight. It has to be at least forty pounds. He then helps me step into high heeled shoes that are shorter than the ones Effie had me wear. "Can I open my eyes yet?" I ask.

I glow with every bit of light that hits me. My dress is made of red and yellow gems with hints of blue at the tips.

One thought enters my mind; I am not pretty, I'm not beautiful, I'm as radiant as the sun.

"Twirl for me," Cinna says and I comply. When I spin there's the illusion of fire and I hear my prep team gasp. Cinna sends them on their way then has me walk around in the dress and shoes so I get used to it.

"Ready for the interviews then?" he asks. I see that he's been discussing with Haymitch by the look on his face.

"I'm awful. Haymitch couldn't find one strategy I could play," I tell him.

Cinna pauses. "Why not be yourself?" he says.

"I can't. Haymitch says I'm sullen and hostile," I say.

"Well you are around Haymitch. Around me you're not. The prep team loves you. You even won over the gamemakers. You're all anyone can talk about in the capital. When you answer the questions pretend you're telling them to a close friend. Who is your best friend at home?" he asks.

"Gale," I say, "but he already knows all these things."

"Could you pretend that you're talking to me?" Cinna asks. I nod and he tells me where he'll be sitting, to look at him when I need to.

It's time to go. We meet the rest of the District 12 party at the elevator. Gale looks handsome as ever in a black suit with red flame accents. I still refuse to make eye contact with him.

We're led to stand in a line with the other tributes in order of section, the girl in front of the boy. Someone is cued and we walk onto the stage and sit down in an arc around Caesar Flickerman. He warms up the crowd with jokes then gets to business.

I have to listen to every interview before me. Everyone is playing up an angle.

Then before I know it it's my turn. I walk up to the stage and shake hands with Caesar. He doesn't wipe the sweat on his coat like I thought he would.

"So, Katniss, the capital must be a huge change from District 12. What's impressed you the most since you got here?" he asks. The words run through my mind barely making sense until I spot Cinna in the crowd.

"The lamb stew," I say. Caesar laughs and some of the audience joins in. "The one with dried plums," he asks and I nod, "I eat that by the bucketful, it doesn't show does it?" The capital people yell reassurances and he turns back to me.

"Now Katniss, when you came out on that chariot my heart stopped," he says.

"So did mine," I say and am encouraged by another round of laughter.

"What did you think of that costume?" Caesar asks. I look at Cinna again and he raises his eyebrow.

"You mean after I got over my fear of being burned alive?" I ask and Caesar laughs before saying, "Yes. Start then."

"I thought Cinna was brilliant and it was the most gorgeous costume I'd ever seen and I couldn't believe I was wearing it. I can't believe I'm wearing this, either." I lift up my skirt to spread it out. "I mean, look at it!" The audience applauds for a short minute. I look at Cinna and he twirls his finger.

I spin once and the audience reacts the same way the prep team did.

"Do that again," says Caesar. I lift my arms above my head and spin. The skirt flies out. When I stop I clutch Caesar's arm. "Don't stop!" he says. "I have to, I'm dizzy," I giggle, something I don't remember doing for a long time. He wraps a protective arm around me and says, "Don't worry, I've got you. Don't want you to follow in your mentor's footsteps?"

The audience erupts in laughter and the camera zooms in on Haymitch, who's become known for his swan dive off stage at the reaping. He smiles then points at me to remind them that I'm the one this interview is for.

"So now, what about that training score? Eleven. How did you get that?" Caesar laughs. I look at the gamemakers and say, "I'm not supposed to talk about it, right?" The man who fell into the punch bowl calls out, "She's not!"

I shrug at Caesar and he continues questioning me, "Alright. Let's go back then, to the reaping. When you volunteered for your sister what was going through your head?"

I can't answer this. I can't. But then I look at Cinna and quietly say, "Her name is Primrose and she's only twelve. I love her more than anything."

"What did she say to you?" he asks.

"She asked me to try to win," I say. My throat tightens.

"Then what did you say?"

I told her that with Gale by my side I might be able to come back. That was before he lied to me, but I can never hold a grudge against him too long.

"That I might stand a chance," I squeeze out.

"With an eleven in training I say the odds are in your favor," says Caesar before the buzzer goes off. With an eleven and Gale.

"I wish you the best of luck, Katniss," he says, "Let's hear it for the girl on fire!" The audience applauds as I walk back to my seat. Gale stands and for the first time today I look into his grey eyes. Then I can't help it. When we walk past each other I grab his hand for a second and squeeze before letting go and sitting down. I watch him walk to Caesar and shake his hand.

I'm still in a daze for the first part of his interview. When I focus on it again I know that Haymitch chose the right angle for Gale; sarcastic and witty.

"Now, Gale, we heard what Katniss thought of the flames. What was your take on them?" asks Caesar.

"I was just glad that I escaped with no third degree burns," Gale says and the audience laughs. He even grins slightly. He adds, "Portia did a great job."

I smile to myself for a moment. For the first time in his life Gale is actually cooperating with the capital, but I wouldn't want it to be for any other reason. When I come back into focus I hear Caesar ask Gale if he has a girlfriend back home. Gale shakes his head.

"Handsome lad like you. There must be special girl. What's her name?" Caesar presses.

"There is a special girl, but she isn't back home," Gale looks down, the grin fading from his face.

"What do you mean?" Caesar asks.

"My girl came with me," Gale says.

There's a moment of silence, but then what he said hits. _My_ _girl_ _came with me_. He means me. My face pops up on the screen, my mouth ajar and my cheeks flushed. I realize what it must have looked like to the capital when I held his hand before he went up.

"That is a piece of bad luck," says Caesar, and there's a real edge of pain in his voice. The crowd is murmuring in agreement, a few have even given agonized cries.

"You're telling me," says Gale.

"It shouldn't come as a surprise. It'd be hard not to fall for that young lady," says Caesar. All Gale does is look back at me and nod. This is why he wouldn't look at me at breakfast yesterday, he was planning this and hiding it from me. The night before that I didn't see him go to his room... He must have talked to Haymitch about it then and Haymitch made him not tell me so I couldn't mess it up.

"Wouldn't you guys love to get Katniss back up here and hear her take?" Caesar says to the crowd. There are shouts but Caesar fake pouts and says, "Sadly, rules are rules and Katniss's time is up. Best of luck to you, Gale, and I think I speak for all of Panem when I say that our hearts go out to you two." Gale nods and walks back to his spot next to me. We have to stand for the national anthem. The camera keeps cutting to us as we stand a few feet apart. I know what they're thinking. _Poor tragic us._

But we know better.

* * *

Ayyyyy Caesar said the title. I didn't even plan that but I saw the opportunity and I took it. (In case you were wondering, "it shouldn't come as a surprise/what I'm feeling now" is a Vance Joy lyric from his song 'From Afar')

I'm planning on uploading again on Sunday. Have a great day!


	6. Chapter 6

After the anthem we're guided to the elevators. I make sure to get in a car without Gale. We zoom up. The elevator stops to drop off four tributes before I reach my floor. Gale has just stepped out of his when I slam my hands into him. He loses his balance and falls into a vase filled with flowers. The vase shatters and Gale falls into the pieces.

"What the hell, Catnip," he says, his voice calmer then it should be.

"What the fuck, Gale," I scream at him.

The other elevators arrive and the whole District 12 team is here.

"What's going on? Did you fall?" Effie yells.

"After she shoved me," Gale says. He stands and looks at his hands and for the first time I see that he's bleeding.

Haymitch looks at me and says, "You shoved him?"

"Was this your idea?" I yell.

"Partially," says Gale.

"What does that mean?" My face feels hot with anger.

"I told Haymitch that I wanted you to go back home instead of me," he says.

"Why would you do that?" I say, but while the words still laced with the same anger they come out soft.

"What do you think?" he says. For a few seconds everyone's silent while I stare into Gale's grey eyes and he stares into mine.

Then Haymitch breaks in, "The romance will win you sponsors. Before he said that you were romantic as dirt, now you're desirable! You're all anyone's talking about. The star-crossed lovers from District 12!"

Cinna comes over and puts his arms around me and says, "He's right, Katniss."

"I should have been told," I say, and I look over at Gale.

"No, you were perfect," says Portia.

My anger is fading, but underneath it I feel hurt. I don't want to look at Gale, but I force myself to and say, "I'm sorry I shoved you."

"I'll be alright," he says, but I walk up to him and look at his hands. He's pulled out all the shards of glass but the cuts are deep.

"I'll stitch you up," I say.

"Katniss, someone else can do that," says Effie.

"No," says Gale. At first I think he's refusing me, but then he extends his hands to me and I grab his wrists.

Haymitch follows us to the bathroom, saying he can't risk his tributes getting into another brawl. I wash Gale's hands with warm water and soap then an Avox brings me a first aid kit. I spray his hands with the disinfectant then wrap his hands with bandages. He doesn't need stitches, the cuts aren't that deep. They just bleed a lot. When I'm done we sit there for a second, his hands in mine. Then Haymitch leads us to dinner.

After dinner we watch the replays of the interviews. I seem frilly and shallow, twirling and giggling in my dress, but the others assure me I'm charming. Gale is actually charming, to me at least. Then there's his confession. We're unforgettable. The boy and girl in love.

This means that if we stay together in the arena like we planned we'll have to act like lovers to get gifts from sponsors. Or I will.

 _"Why would you do that?"_

 _"What do you think?"_

Tomorrow Gale and I have an early start, there's no telling how far we'll have to travel to get to the arena. Haymitch and Effie won't come with us, but Cinna and Portia will travel with us all the way to the launch room. Final goodbyes must be said.

Effie takes us both by the hands and says she wishes us well. She thanks us and tells us that we are the best tributes she's ever had. And because it's Effie she's appearently required by law to say something horrible, she adds, "I wouldn't be surprised at all if I got moved up to a decent district next year!" Then she kisses us on the cheek and heads to her room.

Haymitch crosses his arms and looks us both over.

"Any last advice?" Gale asks.

"When the gong sounds, get the hell out of there. Neither of you go to the bloodbath. Put as much distance with you and the cornucopia as you can and find water. Got it?" Haymitch says.

"And after that?" I ask.

"Stay alive," he says. He said the same thing to us on the train, but he's not drunk and laughing this time.

Gale and I head to our rooms. He stops outside of my door. I look at his bandaged hands and say, "I'm really sorry."

"Don't worry about it, Catnip," he says, his voice flat. I bite my lip, but the question comes out anyway.

"What did you mean, earlier? When you said 'What do you think?'" I ask.

Gale looks at me and there's something in his eyes that's new. He moves closer to me until my back is pressed against the wall and his face is inches from mine. His hand is on my cheek.

Then the room between us is gone. He presses his lips against mine.

This is the first time I've kissed a boy. I feel like there's no air left in my lungs. My heart is beating in my throat.

Gale pulls back and his forehead is against mine.

"I had to do that at least once," he says. Then he starts to move away from me, but I grab his arm. I don't know what to say so I just press my lips against his again. He puts his hands on my waist and pulls me closer to him so our bodies are pressed together.

Maybe I won't have to act.

This time I'm the one who pulls away, but I invite him to my room. "I don't want to be alone tonight," I say and he nods.

I shower first and change into a nightgown and then he showers. When he comes out of the bathroom he's only wearing his pants and my cheeks flush.

"Should I put on a shirt?" he asks and he has a stupid grin on his face. I'm tempted to throw a pillow at him like I did before. He climbs into the bed with me like that first night on the train. My head is on his arm and one of my arms is thrown over his chest.

I don't sleep for a long time. I don't think Gale does either. Every once in a while I'll drift off only to be brought back with a jolt. Somehow Gale beside me calms my nerves, to a point.

I must have slept at some point because I wake up to Cinna and Portia standing above us. I sit up quickly then shake Gale. When he sees our stylists he gets a weird look on his face then rolls out of bed and follows Portia out of the room. My face feels as red as my nails and Cinna gives me a simple shift to wear.

Cinna leads me onto the roof and there's a hovercraft above us. A ladder drops down. I place my hands and feet on the rungs and instantly it's like I'm frozen. Some sort of current glues me to the ladder as it lifts me up to the hovercraft. When I'm inside I expect to be released, but instead a women carrying a syringe approaches me.

"This is your tracker, Katniss," she says. She tells me to stay still, which seems a little ironic considering I can't move. There's a sharp stab of pain in my arm when she puts the tracker into my arm. Now the gamemakers will always be able to trace my location in the arena. Wouldn't want to lose a tribute.

Once the tracker's in place, the ladder releases me. An avox boy comes to lead Cinna and I to a room where breakfast is being served. I know I should eat, but the food barely goes down. Nerves run through my body, making me shake at odd moments.

The hovercraft lands and Cinna and I are dropped off in the catacombs that lie under the arena. We follow the instructions to my launch room. In the districts it's called the stockyard, the place where animals go before slaughter.

I fight to keep down my food. I shower for what will probably be the last time. Cinna does my hair in my trademark braid down my back. The clothes arrive, the same for every tribute. Cinna helps me dress in the undergarments, knee high socks, tawny pants, light green blouse, brown belt, and a think black jacket that stops at my knees. Cinna has me walk around in the clothes to make sure everything fits right.

"The jacket reflects heat so expect some cold nights," he tells me.

The boots are better then I expected they could be. They're made of soft leather like my hunting boots back home, but they have a rubber sole that will be good for running in.

Then Cinna pulls out the gold mockingjay pin that Madge gave me. I had forgotten about it. I feel a pang of guilt go through me. It was Madge's aunt's pin.

"Where did you get that?" I ask.

"Off the green outfit you wore on the train," he says, "It's your token, right?" I nod. He fastens it to my shirt. "It barely cleared the review board. Some thought the pin could be used as a weapon, giving you an unfair advantage. But eventually, they let it through," says Cinna. "They eliminated a ring from that District One girl, though. If you twisted the gemstone, a poisoned spike popped up. She claimed she had no knowledge the ring transformed and there was no way to prove she did. But she lost her token."

There's not much left to say. I turn down food, but I accept a glass of water. I sip it slowly. Cinna asks me if I want to talk but I just shake my head. Then I hold out my hand and he takes it, holding it with both of his hands like Gale did a few nights ago.

After a few minutes of this a voice tells us that it's time to prepare for launch. Still clenching one of his hands he leads me to a circular metal plate.

"Remember what Haymitch said. Run, find water. The rest will follow," he says and I nod. "And remember this. I'm not allowed to bet, but if I could, my money would be on you."

"Truly?" I whisper.

"Truly," says Cinna. He leans down and kisses me on the forehead. "Good luck, girl on fire." And then a glass cylinder is lowering around me, breaking our handhold, cutting him off from me. He taps his fingers under his chin. Head high.

I lift my head as the metal plate pushes me up. For a few seconds I'm in complete darkness then I can feel the cylinder end and the fresh air hit my face. I see daylight and it blinds me.

Then the announcer of the games, Claudius Templesmitch, calls out, "Let the 74th Hunger Games begin!"

* * *

Sorry it's a day late. I'm gonna be in New York for the next week so I don't know when I'll be able to post next.


	7. Chapter 7

We have sixty seconds until we're allowed to get off our plates. Sixty seconds to access our surroundings. Sixty seconds to decide what to do. I look around the cornucopia and I see what I'm looking for almost immediately. There's a bow and a sling of arrows right at the mouth of the cornucopia. I want to run for it, but Haymitch's words echo in my head.

To my right lies a lake. To my left and back there's a forest. In front of me there's a slope that goes down. Maybe a cliff or something.

I look for Gale and see that he's four plates to my right. He's already looking at me. I point to the bow and he follows my gaze then looks back. He nods and I position myself towards the bow.

I'm fast. I can sprint faster than any other girl in my school. This is what I'm built for. Haymitch has never seen me with a bow, he doesn't know how good I am. He doesn't know how fast I can run. If he knew he might even encourage me. Still, I feel a pinch of guilt in my empty stomach. But I've already asked Gale to help me, I can't stop now.

The gong rings out.

I practically launch myself off the plate. I move my feet faster than I've ever had to before. I sprint in a beeline towards the bow and I can almost feel Gale backing me up. I jump over supplies that are small enough and zig zag around the ones that aren't. Then the bow is ten feet away.

I suddenly realize that I haven't been listening to the noises around me. I reach the bow and immediately lift it up. It's already slinged. I throw the quiver over my shoulder and pull back the bow. Gale is about twenty feet away from me, picking up a spear. I scream his name and he looks at me. I run towards him, keeping the arrow ready to fire.

We're running away. Other tributes are reaching the weapons. Gale scoops up a green backpack when I hear the noise. I jump on Gale and let him fall on the ground. The knife flies over our heads. We scramble back up just as the second knife hits the ground where we just were.

"Run!" I scream and we sprint away as fast as we can. There's someone blocking our path and I point my arrow at his chest, but I hesitate. I'm too distracted by the tribute in front of us that I don't hear the knife until it's almost too late. Gale pushes down and the knife catches him in his arm. He cries out and that's enough for me to take action. I stand and release the arrow. It sinks into the tribute's chest.

I reload my bow and take off running again. I hear Gale at my side. We're almost at the edge of the woods when I sneak a glance over my shoulder. The girl from District 2 is turning away from us. It's a miracle she didn't hit us.

When we reach the trees I lower the bow, holding it in just one hand. My now free hand reaches for Gale and we lace our fingers. After we're completely out of view of the other tributes we slow down to a jog. We've been running at this pace for a mile or two until Gale starts to falter beside me. I almost forgot about the knife hitting his arm.

"Let's stop," I say. He's reluctant but ultimately complies. He drops the backpack and his spear and slumps against a nearby tree.

"Take off your jacket," I tell him. He unzips the front and I help him remove the sleeve from his injured arm. The knife hit the middle of his forearm. Blood oozes out at an alarming rate. I bite my lip.

"We can't stay here for long," he says.

"I know," I say, "There might be medical supplies in the backpack."

I reach for the backpack and unzip, pulling out the contents. There's one sleeping bag, a box of matches, some dried fruit, nuts, bread, iodine, a few feet of rope, wire, two empty water bottles, a pot, and exactly what I'm looking for; a med kit. It's basic, containing gauze, pills intended to fight fever, and needles and thread.

"I'm going to stitch it," I tell him. He nods. I use the front of my shirt to clean the wound as well as I can for now. When we find water I'll have to clean it again.

It takes four stitches to close the wound and I wrap some gauze around it. I help him put on his jacket again and we pack the supplies back in the backpack. Gale insists on carrying it again and I roll my eyes. We take off again in a quick jog, our hands clasped together.

Over the next few hours we vary between jogging and walking. At some point Gale uses his spear to cut into a pine tree to get some of the inner bark to eat, not wanting to eat the food in the backpack yet. It's hard to choke down after two weeks of the best food in the world, but we've had worse.

We stop when we hear the canons. There are eleven shots in all. One of those is because of me... I push it down and keep going.

Eventually we need to find shelter. And water. We decide to make camp after the sun goes down. The slope is going downhill and I hate it. I don't like valleys, I like hills, but there's no other option.

We don't find water, but the sun is setting so we decide to scour for camp. I tell him we should climb a tree, and while this isn't his strong suit he doesn't argue. Food will go by fast in the arena so Gale sets complicated snares. We walk another five minutes then decide to make camp in a willow tree.

I pick a low branch so Gale doesn't have to climb too high. We pull out the sleeping bag and settle in it together, leaning against the stump. We decide to eat one slice of the bread and a handful of nuts and dried fruit each. He wraps his uninjured arm around my shoulder.

"I'm sorry about your arm. I feel like it's my fault," I say.

"Don't be. It was worth the risk," he says. Then he kisses my forehead and a new warmth floods through me. But I frown. Something else has been bothering me.

"I killed someone." I did. He probably would have died anyway, but I was the one to ensure it. I think he was the male tribute from District 5. I don't even know his name. He has a family, maybe even a girlfriend who thought he'd really might come back...

I bury my face in the crook of his neck and try not to cry. I breathe heavily but manage to hold back the tears. Gale doesn't try to say anything. He just rubs my back.

The national anthem brings me back. Gale and I look up at the sky and see Panem's seal through the tree branches. Then they start showing the pictures.

The girl from District 3.

"All the careers from 1 and 2 are still alive."

The boy from 4.

"Good."

The boy from 5. I tense up. Neither of us say anything.

Both tributes from 6 and 7. The boy from 8. Both from 9. The girl from 10.

We see the seal once more and then the music stops.

"There are still five careers left," Gale says. I nod and say, "So is Rue." Little Rue. I want her to win if we don't.

"She reminds you of Prim, doesn't she?" he asks.

"Yeah, but there was no one to volunteer for her," I say, staring at the rise and fall of Gale's chest.

"I never told you, but I was so proud of you when you did that. Angry as hell that Prim was even reaped, but so proud," he squeezes my shoulders when he tells me this.

"Would you really have volunteered to keep me alive if you weren't reaped?" I ask him. I look into his grey eyes, aware that the cameras are watching.

"You'd never forgive me if I did," he says then kisses me. While his lips give me the same warmth that they did last night, I'm still frustrated that he didn't answer the question. But what he said is true. if he did he would have left Prim and his siblings with only one parent to support them and it's a thought I can't stand. So I pull away.

"We should sleep at different times while the other watches. I'll go first," I say.

"Okay." He lays down completely but his head still pops out of the sleeping bag. He pulls his hood over his head and settles again. I know he's asleep when his breathing slows down and he's no longer scowling. He looks years younger than he has to act.

I'm exhausted from the day. Neither of us slept very long last night, if he even slept at all, but I want him to sleep first. He lost a lot of blood today. I also want to be alone with my thoughts for a bit. They're the only thing left that I have to myself. I look down at the ground.

* * *

Turns out that I've had a bit of down time. I wrote some of this on the flight and some of it now in my hotel room. Thank you guys so much for the reviews!


	8. Chapter 8

Long chapter alert.

* * *

After a few hours there's the sound of footsteps over pine needles. Gale and I have learned over years how to walk so our footsteps don't make any noise, but whoever this is obviously hasn't. I load my bow and shake Gale's shoulder until he wakes up. When he opens his eyes there's the snaps of tree branches being broken off trees. I press my index finger to my lips and point towards the noises. But then they stop. Gale and I look over and soon enough we see a spark and then a fire comes to life. Gale leans towards me and gets so close that I can feel his lips brush against my ear.

"Should we kill them now?" he asks and I tense up. The fire is creating smoke that practically broadcasts our location to the other tributes. The remaining careers, and whoever else they decide to take with them, will be hunting through the night and they're bound to see that fire. But the night is cold and I feel sympathy for the tribute. I lean close to Gale's ear.

"We can't run, we don't know where the careers are or how soon they can get here. We have to stay and we can't kill them because then they'll see the hovercraft," I whisper back.

"What about when they get here? You've got the bow and I've got a spear," he murmurs.

"We're outnumbered," I tell him.

"In a tree," he points out.

"If you can climb this high so can they."

"Not with you shooting arrows at them."

"We don't know how many of them there are."

He stops to think then tells me, "You should sleep until they come. I'll wake you if I come up with something."

I don't argue because before the tribute came I was about to wake him so I could sleep myself. My eyes feel heavy and dry. I hand him the bow then settle into the sleeping bag. Gale pulls my hair away from my face. I remember my father used to do this to my mother.

The next time I wake up it's to Gale's hand on my shoulder but then I hear a sharp scream and sit up quickly. I'm about to ask Gale what happened before I remember where we are. He wraps his arms around me to keep me still. The scream was distinctly female. For a second I worry it came from Rue, but she's much too smart to light a fire at night.

There are laughs from the careers and I hear them search the girl's body, but she doesn't have anything good on her. I look at Gale and he shakes his head. They're about twenty yards away, but we stay as still as possible, staring into each other's eyes. But then the careers stop.

"Shouldn't we have heard a cannon by now?" one of them asks.

"Yes. Nothing to stop the cannons from going off now."

"So she isn't dead."

"She's dead, I stabbed her myself."

"Then where's the cannon?"

"She's dead!"

"Someone should go check."

"We don't want to track her down twice."

"I said she's dead."

"Then you shouldn't mind if we check."

An argument breaks out, but eventually one of them goes to check. Then there's a cannon and we hear them walk back to the rest of them.

"Was she dead?"

"No, but she is now."

Then they start to walk off again. The hovercraft picks up the girl's body. Gale and I wait for a few minutes before we decide to finally move.

"We should leave," I tell him. He nods and says, "The snares might have caught something."

I almost forgot about the snares. We pack up our stuff and drop to the ground with our weapons ready. We walk to where Gale set the snares and, unsurprisingly, all of them have caught rabbits, four in all. They won't keep for long when they're raw, so we decide that we'll go to the dying embers of the fire that the tribute started and cook the meat there.

Gale and I quickly skin and gut the rabbits and lay them over the still burning logs. It doesn't take long and we wrap them up in gauze. It seems wasteful, but it's our best option.

"While the careers are hunting, we should go to the lake," Gale suggests. It's not a bad plan.

"What if someone's guarding it?" I ask.

"We'll scope it out before we get too close. It's the only place where we know there's water," he says.

Gale lost a lot of blood yesterday and we haven't had water since we were launched into the arena. He must be feeling a lot worse than me, so I agree and we head to the lake. It's pretty far off from what I could tell but it'll take us less time to reach it then the careers. We grab each other's hands and take off in a jog towards the lake.

After a few hours we stop to eat a rabbit and the rest of our nuts. Then we start up again, not wanting to stay in one place for too long when we know the careers might be heading to the same location we are. We vary between jogging and walking, like we did yesterday when running from the cornucopia.

When we get there we look towards the career camp. The only one there is the boy from District 3. It seems strange, considering he didn't have that high of a training score, for him to be allied with the careers. But he's there holding a spear standing next to a large pile of supplies from the cornucopia. They're all stacked in a pile and there's fresh dirt surrounding all sides. We don't have much time to think about it though. The boy is walking in circles around the pile. When he's no longer facing the lake Gale and I emerge from the tree line to fill up our water bottles. When we're done we run back to cover.

Gale points to the other side of the lake and says, "It looks like there's a river." I follow his gaze and sure enough, there seems to be a river flowing from the lake.

"The careers might be looping around to the river on their way back," I tell him. He seems to consider this, his eyebrows creasing.

"Let's climb a tree and wait for them to come back, then head down the river," he says. We need to stay close to water and being close to the lake is a bad idea because it'll constantly be guarded by the careers once they get back, so I agree.

I pick a tree that offers enough concealment that Gale doesn't have to climb too high. When we get up we're sitting facing each other on a thick branch.

"Take off your jacket, we should clean your cut again," I say. He takes it off and I remove the bloody gauze. It's swollen a lot so that the stitches look very tight. The skin around it looks bruised and there's pus leaking out. I can't help the cringe on my face, but Gale doesn't say anything. I pour water on it and scrub it with my fingernails. It must hurt a lot, but Gale's not much of a complainer when it comes to injuries. I wrap it with clean gauze and make Gale take one of the fever pills because I figure they fight infections. We put iodine in the water we have left.

While we wait Gale grabs my hands and we stare down at them. Holding hands is new for us, but it would feel so natural if it wasn't for the heat rushing to my cheeks. I hope he doesn't notice, but the smirk on his face tells me he does. Luckily, there are cameras watching so he doesn't say anything to make my cheeks redder. I wonder what my mother and Prim think of this.

It's almost an hour until we hear them. Their conversation echoes through the woods and I judge them to be pretty far off. We see them emerge from the woods and walk towards the pile. Gale and I look each other and figure this is the best time to go towards the river. We stay far away from the clearing as we walk around the lake towards the river, walking carefully to make no noise. When we figure we're out of hearing range we take off our boots and socks and start to walk in the river so we don't leave tracks. I load my bow so I can shoot any fish if I see them.

We're a few hours away when we decide to make camp again. By that time I've shot a few fish and a fat bird that was walking by the bank. Gale sets up some more snares while I dig in the water for katniss roots. We sit down by the river and take out all our food. Three rabbits, three fish, some roots, the bird, the bread, and our dried fruit.

"It won't be The Hunger Games for us," Gale says with a smirk and I smile back.

We make a meal out of a rabbit, a few slices of bread, some of the roots and the rest of our dried fruit. We decide that at dusk we'll cook the bird and the fish. The fish we could eat raw, but cooking it will make it last longer. Gale tells me to sleep since I only got to sleep for an hour or two.

I lay out of the sleeping bag, on the ground next to Gale. I know it's not the best strategy, but it's broad daylight and Gale will be able to hear any tribute that approaches.

I wake up hours later. Gale's a few feet away from me, setting up branches for a fire. I watch him for a minute before he notices I'm awake. The scowl on his face immediately transforms into a smile and I mirror him. We must look like idiots. I have no idea if the district audiences even take us seriously, but the audience of the capital must love us. I wonder why we haven't gotten any sponsor gifts yet.

"Hey Catnip," he says. It's dusk.

"How long did I sleep?" I ask.

"A few hours, maybe five," he tells me.

"That must have been so boring for you," I say. I stand up and walk to him. When I get to him I'm not sure what to do, how to touch him. This is all so new to me. Gale doesn't seem to be quite as daunted as I am. He closes the space I left in between us and puts his hand on my cheek and I put mine on his chest. He kisses me softly then pulls away just to kiss me again, harder this time.

I'm so aware of the cameras. Haymitch called this a strategy, an act, but how much of this is a strategy to Gale? Is he kissing me because he wants to or because he wants sponsors? I know Gale is my friend and he wants me to live, but friend seems to casual of a word. And he kissed me even before we entered the games. But he didn't tell me about his feelings until the interviews.

And his movements are so natural, as if he's done this all before, and for all I know he could have been. Gale could have been kissing girls left and right back in 12 and I never would have noticed. He certainly had enough takers. I can't help it, I pull away from him.

"Katniss," he says, "What are you thinking about?"

Something that might embarrass me in front of Panem if I say it out loud. "Nothing," I say, but Gale can tell I'm lying. He raises his eyebrow them steps away to set the fire.

"Ugh, fine." I grab his arm and make him turn back to me. "Have you ever kissed any other girls?"

"Yes. You know, you were only twelve when we met. And a real pain. I did have a life outside of you," he says and I punch his arm.

"Who did you kiss? And where?"

"Too many to remember. Behind the slag heap, the school, you name it."

I want to hit him again, but I just roll my eyes. "When did I become so special?"

"About six months ago. It was right after New Year's. We were eating some soup at the market. Your red haired friend,"-he must mean Darius-"was teasing you about trading something for one of his kisses. And I realized that I minded."

I remember that day. We were hunting until a snow drove us to the Hob. Gale must have said the market and called Darius my red haired friend because he wants to protect them in front of the cameras. The Hob was crowded with people looking for refuge from the weather. Greasy Sae's soup, made with stock from the bones of a wild dog Gale and I had shot a week earlier, was below her usual standards. Still, it was hot, and I was starving as I scooped it up, sitting cross-legged on her counter. Darius was leaning on the post of the stall, tickling my cheek with the end of my braid, while I smacked his hand away. He was explaining why one of his kisses merited a rabbit, or possibly two, since everyone knows redheaded men are the most virile. And Greasy Sae and I were laughing because he was so ridiculous and persistent and kept pointing out women around the Hob who he said had paid far more than a rabbit to enjoy his lips.

"My _friend_ was just joking around," I tell Gale.

"I know. But you'd be the last one to know if he wasn't."

This makes me hit him and he laughs at me.

"I mean it took you long enough to realize I was flirting," he jokes and grabs my hand before I can hit him again.

"There's a difference between sarcasm and flirting," I say, feeling the muscles in my face relaxing.

"Not that big of one," he says and our lips touch again. Gale pulls back first and starts the fire before sitting down. I plop down next to him and help him cook the bird and fish. While I was asleep Gale must have unplucked the bird, skinned the fish and gutted them both.

"So, we should plan something."

"Plan what?" I ask.

"An offensive attack," he says and I raise my eyebrows. "We shouldn't be scurrying away from the careers. We've got the weapons."

"We're still outnumbered, though."

Gale and I spent the next hour forming a plan. While we talk, we eat another meal of two fish, the bird's legs, and some of the katniss roots. Once we've come up with something the sun has set and we've long since killed our fire. We climb a tree and settle on a wide branch, laying in our sleeping bag. I'm taking the first watch since I slept not too long ago. Gale falls asleep quickly, the crease on his forehead fading. I turn back to look at him, thinking of all the times we've sat next to each other on our rock and watched the sunrise, all the times I've made him laugh, all the times he's saved not only me but both our families from starving.

And I want him to live. I want him to live so _damn_ much.

* * *

As you can see, I'm trying to mirror some of the conversations that happened in the book so I can keep it accurate and in character. Sorry if it's a little annoying.

I went to The Hunger Games Exhibition in Times Square (after I spent the morning convincing my family to take me). I really recommend going to it when it goes on tour! The gift shop is a little pricey, but postcards are always cheap and cute so you could get some of those.


	9. Chapter 9

Gale and I will split up. Tomorrow we will travel for a full day in opposite directions from the river. When the sun sets we will pick an area to set entrapments around a fire. At midday the next day we'll light the fires within a few minutes of each other. Hopefully the careers will see the smoke and decide to hunt us, causing them to split up, making it easier to pick them off when they get trapped in the snares. We will pick them off from the trees. Then we will come back to our camp by the river.

This is the plan.

Of course, the plan has many faults. We have to split up. Gale's only weapon is the spear and he's injured. I'm not as good at setting snares as Gale. Some of the careers might manage to avoid the traps. But this is what we decide to go with.

We decide to spend one day together before we split up. This way we can gather more food and Gale can help me perfect the snare we're going to use. Neither of us say it, but it's also because neither of us want to face the games alone. We spend the morning running through the snare. Gale has me work on it until I can tie it with my eyes closed.

We eat lunch, then go hunting. I let Gale use the bow because I know he's been wanting to. While he's talented with the spear his weapon is still the bow. The bow and his wits. The only reason I'm better then him is because I've gotten more practice. When we've caught three squirrels and two rabbits we go to the river to gather more katniss roots. We also find mint leaves. It feels like a Sunday back home, except now Gale looks at me in a new way.

"What?" I ask when I notice him staring at me.

"I told you we could do it," Gale says.

"Do what?"

Gale covers his mouth and whispers in my ear, "We could leave the district, live in the woods."

And we have. Just not the way he expected.

We wrap our arms around each other, but for how long, I'm not sure. I breath in his scent and he rubs my back. For however long we hold each other I get a false sense of hope. Then reality comes crashing back when I'm reminded that only one of us can live.

* * *

"Maybe we should wait to do this. I'm not sure if it'll work," I say. He's holding both of my hands in his, like he did after they announced our training scores. We're back at our camp by the river, waiting for dusk so we can safely light a fire to cook our freshly caught food.

"Why not?"

"You won't have a bow, the only weapon you have is a spear. And you still have the cut on your arm."

"I'll be alright," he says. He brings one hand up to his lips and presses them against it.

"But what if you won't be." His eyes find mine and I can see that he's scared too. But scared for himself, or scared for me?

"Don't worry about me, Katniss. It'll take more than a couple of careers to kill me," he says, quieter as he closes the space between us.

My back presses against the tree and he lets go of my hands to hold my waist. But instead of my lips, he kisses my neck. I curl my fingers in his hair. He moves from my neck to my jawline, and from there he moves to my lips, saying my name before he finally kisses me.

We hear the thunk and jump apart. I half lunge, half dive for my bow and arrows. I've already reached them when Gale says, "It's a parachute!"

I look at the ground where he points and, sure enough, I see a silver parachute attached to a long bag. Gale and I exchange eye contact and go towards the bag. I open it to see gold bow and arrows. It's exactly what we need to ensure the plan works. There are even a few more feet of rope and vile of a cream that I'm sure is to help heal Gale's cut.

"Thank you, Haymitch," I almost yell. I hug Gale and he spins me around.

Even the black bag that the sponsor gifts came in will be useful. That way both Gale and I will have a bag, instead of me just stuffing supplies inside the silver quiver and small pot.

Gale will take the backpack and I'll take the sponsor bag, which has a strap that slings over one shoulder. We divide up the food and rope. We will both take one full water bottle. Gale will bring the iodine with him. I'll bring the sleeping bag. Gale will bring the pot. We split up the medical supplies, but I make sure Gale has plenty of gauze and the vile of cream that came in the bag. We both get matches.

When night falls we climb our tree and slide into the sleeping bag. We wrap our arms around each other and my head rests on his chest so I can hear his heartbeat. I'm afraid that this will be the last time I'll see him.

In the morning we part ways.

I walk the whole day, only stopping for meals. When the sun almost sets I stop and climb a tree to sleep in for the night. I slide into the sleeping bag. While I wish I could have persuaded Gale to take it, I'm thankful for it's warmth. This is the first night of the games when I'm alone. I don't sleep for a while.

When I wake up the sun is still rising. I climb down the tree and start to collect firewood. I set it in a neat pile, putting green branches and leaves on top. These will create a lot of smoke when they burn. Then I set the snare that Gale and I perfected yesterday. I climb back up the tree and look in the general direction of where Gale is supposed to be. He's supposed to light his fire first and I'll light mine when I see the smoke.

It's about an hour later when I first see the smoke. I climb down and light the fire. I scurry back up the tree and arm my bow, as if I'm afraid the careers will burst through the trees right away.

I'm not sure how long I'm there until I start to hear noises. The careers put almost no effort into being stealthy. I judge there to be three of them. They're only a few feet away from my tree when I hear the first scream. One of the others rushes to help but then they're caught in the trap too. I see them through the branches and point my arrow at the first one, the girl from District 4. I don't hesitate this time. I let go and watch the arrow go into her skull and there's a cannon. I aim my next arrow at the other tribute and let go, but the tribute moves and the arrow only catches her in the arm. She cuts herself lose and runs away, following the other tribute that managed to avoid the traps.

I won't track them. Instead I throw my bag over my shoulder and drop down from the tree. I cut off the pack off the dead tribute's back and start running towards the river, stuffing it in my bag while I run. I don't stop running for a long time.

I won't reach the river before the sun sets so I decide to make camp somewhere else for tonight. Traveling at night doesn't seem safe, especially when at least three of the careers are still alive, including the boy from 3. Two more cannons went off about twenty minutes after my attack on the careers, and I'm praying Gale isn't one of them.

 _"It's going to take more than a couple of careers to kill me."_

I climb up a tree and decide to look at what was inside the career's pack. A lot of knives, dried fruit, a small first aid kit, some cheese, a flashlight, and a water bottle. That's all that the career I killed carried with her. Cheese and dried fruit. She obviously wasn't worried about starving, so the careers must have an abundance of food. I think back to previous Hunger Games. The years when the careers haven't been able to rely on food from the cornucopia are usually the years that tributes from other Districts win. Our next plan should be to attack the career's supplies themselves.

 _If Gale's still alive to plan._

The possibility that Gale might not be alive almost drives me insane. The only thing that calms me is that I will know in about an hour. Until then I slowly eat and drink from the water that was in the career's pack.

The anthem plays and I almost fall out of the tree when I sit up. I wrap my arms around the stump and look up at the sky. It shows the boy from 1, the girl from 1, and the girl from 4.

Thank God.

I pull out the sleeping bag and settle inside. District 1 and District 4 are out of the game. Two seam kids are slowly taking down the career tributes. District 12 must be ecstatic. I fall asleep quickly tonight, warm from knowing Gale is alive.

When I wake up the next morning I eat some of the cheese I got from the careers and some of the leftover rabbit. Then I pack everything up and climb down my tree. I switch between jogging and walking towards the river. I'm too far upstream when I get there so I hike downstream for a bit. I shoot two fish on the way. When I reach Gale and I's camp I sit down and lean against our tree.

After a few hours without Gale having shown up I decide to eat one of the fish I shot. They'll only last for a day or two anyway. When I'm done eating that I figure that I'll eat the last of the katniss roots that I have left.

This only buys me a bit of time. I chew on mint leaves, trying to calm my nerves. After a few more hours of this I start pacing.

Maybe Gale is injured. Maybe he's slowly bleeding out.

I can't stand being stuck waiting anymore. I take one of the knives that I found in the career's pack and carve an arrow in the tree, pointing in the direction Gale walked towards. This way, if Gale comes back to the camp and doesn't find me he'll know that I went looking for him.

I can't let Gale die.

* * *

Uh oh.

They're separated.


	10. Chapter 10

Long chapter alert.

* * *

 _"We could do it, you know."_

 _"What?"_

 _"Leave the district. Run off. Live in the woods. You and I, we could make it."_

I wake up from the dream with a start. That day was only a week or two ago, but it feels like a lifetime. I'm not sure if we'll make it this time around. I need to find Gale.

Yesterday I didn't leave the camp by the river until about two hours before sundown, so I still have a ways to go until I reach where Gale must have made his fire. I quickly eat before I pack all my stuff in my bag and climb down the tree.

I hike all day, going in circles and loops, until I finally find the area where Gale lit his fire. The logs are still there, charred black, and some of the traps around it seem to have been activated. Gale killed two of them, I know. There's a lot of blood. He might have shot one of them in the neck, and that would explain it. But there could be many other reasons why.

Over the next few hours I loop around the area to search for him, even using the flashlight I found in the career pack when the sun goes down. After about an hour of searching in the dark I give up, going back to Gale's camp and climbing what I assume is the tree that he would have been in.

The night is so cold, the tip of my nose feels frozen. How is Gale faring in this? The thoughts spinning around in my head don't let me fall asleep for a long time.

* * *

The sound of stampeding footsteps wakes me up. I don't even have to look before I know it's there. I already smell the smoke. When I do open my eyes I see it right away. It's hard not to notice the wall of fire creeping towards me.

I scramble from the tree. I almost fall down before I realize I'm in my sleeping bag still. I put the sponsor bag inside the sleeping bag last night so all I have to do is get out of the bag and throw it over my shoulder. I climb down the tree as fast as I can. When I hit the ground I take off immediately in the direction opposite of the fire.

The world has transformed to fire and smoke.

Burning branches crack from trees and fall in showers of sparks at my feet. I follow the animals whose footsteps woke me up. The rabbits and deer. I even see a pack of wild dogs. I trust their sense of direction, so I follow them as best as I can. But they move gracefully. I trip over roots and fallen tree branches. To think I pride myself on knowing how to move through a forest.

The heat is horrible, but the smoke is worse. I pull my shirt over my mouth and nose. It offers a thin veil of protection, but it doesn't help completely. I choke as I run, even trying not to breath for as long as I can. Twigs materialize out of the grey haze before I can move out of the way and cut my face.

This was no tribute's campfire gone out of control, no accidental occurrence. The flames that bare down on me have an unnatural height, a uniformity that marks them as human-made, machine-made, Gamemaker-made. Things have been uneventful for the past two days.

The fire is designed to bring the tributes together. It's not the most original device to do so, but it is oh so very effective.

After a few minutes I feel my throat and lungs burning. Tears run down my face. I can't take it anymore so I duck behind a rock and then the vomiting begins. I lose all the food I ate today. I heave and heave until all that comes out is bile, and then I dry heave some more.

I know I should keep going, but now I'm lightheaded. I feel so weak. I give myself a minute to put myself together. I drink the two mouthfuls of the water I have left. I fold my sleeping bag, and my jacket for good measure, inside my bag. I'm being too slow, though. The minute is up. And the gamemakers were counting too.

I duck when I hear it. The fireball blasts over my head and crashes into the rock. I scramble up and start to sprint for my life. I hear the second fireball on my left and dive down just in time. I'm barely on my feet when the next one hits the ground where I just was.

If I make the wrong move, I die.

Time loses meaning as I run. Any time I hear the hiss I dive out of the way without even having to look. To stay in one place is to die, so I'm always moving. I keep moving forward. I know that this has to stop somewhere. I know that certain parts of the arenas are rigged for different things. If I keep moving I will eventually get out of reach of the fireballs. But into the hands of the remaining careers probably.

I have no idea how long I do this, but at some point the fireballs become less frequent, which is good because I'm vomiting again. All that comes out is stomach acid. It burns my throat on the way up. I wait for the next fireball to come, but I don't hear the noise.

Somehow I pick up on the scent of singed hair. I hands find my braid and I realize a fireball must have burned off at least six inches of hair.

I hear the noise, but I'm not as quick to relax this time. I move, but it goes in between my arm and waist, hitting my ribs on its descent to the ground. I let out a sharp scream before I get the sense to roll it back and forth on the ground. It hit near my elbow and ribs. Without thinking I rip the blackened fabric off my waist.

The attack is over. The gamemakers don't want me dead. Yet.

If it stopped that means that there is at least one other tribute close to me, and I'm willing to bet it's not Gale.

My sight is poor. I can see maybe fifteen yards in any direction. A tribute could easily be concealed from me here. I should draw my bow as a precaution, but I doubt my ability to hold it for long. The pain in my hands can in no way compete with the burns on my arm and ribs. Burns are the worst kind of pain to me, but I have never experienced anything like this.

I don't even realize that I've walked into a pond until I'm ankle deep. I stick my hands into the cool water and feel instant relief. That's what my mother says to do to burns, run them under cold water. I throw my bag on the bank and drop into the water until only my head sticks out.

I take off my shirt to examine the wounds, but I almost faint when I finally look at them for longer than a second. The skin is bright red and covered with blisters. I force myself to breathe normally. I know there are cameras on me right now and people will judge me based on my reaction. Pity does not win sponsors, refusal to give in does.

I wash my face, force myself to eat some of the dried fruit. I wish that I had water to drink, but I don't want to drink water that hasn't been treated with iodine. I look at the burned ends of my hair and cut off another inch for good measure.

I sort my bag. I decide to take out my bow and arrows, knowing that I'll eventually have to deal with another tribute. I put my jacket on, but it gives me the feeling of when someone presses their finger against a bruise, so I take it off immediately.

It almost hurts to breathe, the rise and fall of my chest constantly bothers the burn on my ribs. But this is just something I'll have to deal with.

I've been here too long, I know. The smoke is starting to clear, but it certainly can't be healthy. I might try to leave, but everytime I lift my ribs above the water the pain sends me back right away. And despite the pain, drowsiness starts to take over.

I'm lucky that I'm ready when I hear the footsteps, because I have less then a minute's head start. I take off, running as fast as I can away from them. That is, until I remember that I have my bow. I arm it and point towards where the footsteps are coming from. I'm about to fire when the figure breaks through the foliage and almost runs into me. But I can't because it's Rue.

She looks at me with wide eyes and stops in her tracks.

"Who are you running from?" I ask, lowering my bow.

"District 2," she says.

This would be an opportunity. I could leave her to die at the hands of the remaining careers and no one would blame me. After all, only one person can survive these games. But I can't do it, I can't stand by while she dies.

"I'll help you," I say, grabbing her hand and running. She seems confused for a second, but doesn't hesitate further. We hear their footsteps behind us, urging us to move faster.

"Can you climb trees?" I ask her.

"Yes," she chokes out.

I pick a tree and tell her to climb it. I expect her to be slow, but she scurries up like a squirrel. I follow her. By the time District 2 reaches the bottom of the tree we're at least twenty feet in the air.

We survey each other for a while. Then I smile at them.

"How's everything with you?" I call down. This throws them off for a second.

"Well enough," the boy says, "Yourself?"

"It's a bit warm for my taste," I say, "The air is better up here. Why don't you come on up?"

I draw back my bow and point it down at them, trying not to wince as I stretch the burn.

"I'd rather not." He doesn't move away, though. The smile fades from my face and I narrow my eyes at him.

"Tell me about Gale and I won't shoot you," I say. He considers it for a moment.

"How do I know that you won't shot me after I tell you?" he asks.

"I guess you'll just have to trust me."

He actually laughs, looking from his district partner to me. "I guess I will."

"So get on with it."

"Alright. Settle down. Your plan worked. When we saw the two campfires we split up. It did seem suspicious, though, but the fires were far enough away that we figured it was a coincidence. So I went with Marvel and Glimmer-," he must mean the tributes from 1, "-to lover boy's fire. His traps caught all of us, but I cut myself out before he could shoot me."

He pauses then asks, "How do you have two sets of bow and arrows, by the way? I only remember there being one at the cornucopia."

"Generous sponsors," I say, "Keep talking."

"Both of the arrows he fired hit Marvel and Glimmer in the hearts, so when I heard the cannons I ran away. I didn't run too far, though. I wanted to catch him on the ground so he wouldn't have an aerial advantage. So I waited for him to climb down and then I ambushed him. Didn't know he also had a spear. He caught me in the arm with an arrow before I reached him. Then I slashed his leg with my sword." His voice changes from amused to angry as he keeps going. "Then you know what the motherfucker did? He stabbed my foot into the ground with the fucking spear and ran off. I couldn't fucking run with a spear pinning my goddamn foot in the goddamn ground. So he got away."

I have to hide my smile. The boy is angry now.

"This is where my trust should come in handy. Can I go now?" he asks.

"Put down your weapons," I tell him.

"Why?"

"You just told me that you waited for Gale to climb down and then you ambushed him. How am I supposed to know you won't do that now if you're still armed?"

"Fine," the girl says this. She puts down her weapons first then convinces the boy to do the same. I see the gauze wrapped around her forearm. If I wasn't able to kill her, at least I hit her throwing arm.

"Now unless you want an arrow in your other goddamn foot I suggest you leave," I say.

The boy and I stare each other down until his district partner finally starts to walk away, tugging on his arm. I now notice that he's limping. I wait a good five minutes before I put down my bow.

I look at Rue. There are black marks on her face as if she was breathing in ash.

"Rue? We should go now," I say to her.

"Why are you helping me?" she asks.

"The careers aren't the only ones who can make allies," I say, but she doesn't completely believe this, so I add, "And you remind me of my sister." She doesn't question this.

"Come on, we have to go now," I tell her. I start to climb down. She doesn't hesitate to follow me now. When we hit the ground I tell her to stay close and start to run in the opposite direction of where the careers went. My lungs feel smaller than usual and my burn is aching.

"Did you get burned?" I ask Rue.

"My arm."

We stop to eat and look at our burns. I've barely had any food stay in me in the past twenty hours, so I figure it's a good idea. All the food I have left is one rabbit and the cheese from District 4's pack. Rue has a handful of roots and berries to contribute. I pick up a berry and hold it between two fingers.

"Are you sure this is safe?" I ask.

"Oh yes. We have them back home," she says. I bite into it and it's sweet and tart. It's almost as good as District 12's blackberries. I think of Gale and it feels like a weight has settled onto my shoulders.

"I've never had this much meat to myself before," Rue says. I'll bet she hasn't. I'd bet meat hardly comes her way.

"Take the back leg."

"What?"

"I can hunt more, and I can set snares. This rabbit will only keep for another day so we might as well finish it off."

Rue looks uncertainty at the leg. I pick it up and put it in her hand. "Oh, take it."

Hunger wins out. She doesn't hesitate to bite it once it's in her hand.

"So you weren't kidding about being allies?"

"No."

"What about Gale?" she asks and that makes me stop to think for a minute.

"I need to find him," I say.

"What happened?"

I tell her about our plan, how we split up. She nods along. I tell her how he hadn't come back to our camp so I decided to look for him. I also connect what I knew to what Cato said. I doubt that Cato lied about anything, he definitely wasn't in the position to lie and he didn't know how much I already knew.

"I think I know where the river is from here," Rue says.

"You do?" I try not to sound too excited as I say this.

"We just need to head a little right of the direction we were headed in."

"Oh good."

"So it's true," she says.

"What?" I ask stupidly.

"You and him," she says with a smirk on her face. Of course that's what she was asking. I roll my eyes at her but nod my head, a smile tugging on my lips.

I look down at my hands. They're covered in scars and thick skin, from years of hunting. I know that Gale's hands are too. Maybe that's why we fit together, because we've both been hurt but healed together. I've let him see my scars and he's let me see his.

"That's why I need to find him..."

* * *

Hey guys. Sorry it's been a while since I've updated. I've been busy with the holidays around and I was trying to plan how Katniss and Rue's timeline will play out. I thought about not having Rue in this story, but I feel that Katniss choosing Rue as an ally is one of the most important parts of the book so I really wanted to include it.

Happy 2016!


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